Horn Pond — a lake in York County, Maine at about 168 m (551 ft) above sea level — is a popular subject for landscape photographers. It sits roughly 5.0 km (3.1 mi) NW of Acton.
Horn Pond is a 227-acre (92 ha) water body located on the border of Acton, Maine, and Wakefield, New Hampshire, in the United States. The lake is both spring-fed and fed by the outflows of Great East Lake to the north and Wilson Lake to the east. Horn Pond's outlet is the Salmon Falls River which forms a natural border between Maine and New Hampshire and empties into the Piscataqua River east of Dover, New Hampshire, and ultimately the Gulf of Maine. Horn Pond is classified as "Potentially Non-supporting" under the New Hampshire Department of Environmental Services' revised water quality standards for oligotrophic lakes. The Horn Pond watershed covers 1,139 acres (461 ha) that is primarily forested (70%). Only 6% of the watershed is developed, with 34% buildable area. The shoreline of Horn Pond is composed primarily of low density houses and camps (51%) and undeveloped shoreline...From the Wikipedia article “Horn Pond”, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Sunrise & sunset directions
At Horn Pond the sunrise point swings a long way through the year: about 56° (NE) at the June solstice and 123° (ESE) in late December. Sunset moves from 304° (NW) in June to 238° (WSW) in December, and the midday sun climbs to 70° in summer but only 23° in winter.
| Date | Sunrise | Azimuth | Sunset | Azimuth | Noon sun | Daylight |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| March equinox (Mar 20) | 6:48 AM | 90° E | 6:56 PM | 271° W | 46° | 12h 08m |
| June solstice (Jun 21) | 5:03 AM | 56° NE | 8:29 PM | 304° NW | 70° | 15h 26m |
| September equinox (Sep 22) | 6:32 AM | 89° E | 6:43 PM | 271° W | 47° | 12h 11m |
| December solstice (Dec 21) | 7:15 AM | 123° ESE | 4:11 PM | 238° WSW | 23° | 8h 56m |
Azimuth is measured clockwise from true north (90° = east, 270° = west). Computed for 2026; values change by less than a degree from year to year.
Golden hour & blue hour by month
Lakes reflect best in calm air — usually the first hour after sunrise, before breezes ripple the surface.
| Month (15th) | Blue hour starts | Sunrise | Golden hour ends | Golden hour starts | Sunset | Blue hour ends | Daylight |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 6:43 AM | 7:15 AM | 8:00 AM | 3:48 PM | 4:33 PM | 5:05 PM | 9h 18m |
| February | 6:14 AM | 6:43 AM | 7:24 AM | 4:34 PM | 5:14 PM | 5:44 PM | 10h 31m |
| March | 6:29 AM | 6:57 AM | 7:35 AM | 6:12 PM | 6:50 PM | 7:19 PM | 11h 53m |
| April | 5:32 AM | 6:02 AM | 6:40 AM | 6:48 PM | 7:27 PM | 7:57 PM | 13h 25m |
| May | 4:47 AM | 5:20 AM | 6:01 AM | 7:21 PM | 8:02 PM | 8:35 PM | 14h 42m |
| June | 4:27 AM | 5:03 AM | 5:47 AM | 7:44 PM | 8:27 PM | 9:03 PM | 15h 25m |
| July | 4:42 AM | 5:17 AM | 6:00 AM | 7:41 PM | 8:24 PM | 8:58 PM | 15h 07m |
| August | 5:18 AM | 5:49 AM | 6:29 AM | 7:10 PM | 7:49 PM | 8:20 PM | 14h 00m |
| September | 5:55 AM | 6:24 AM | 7:02 AM | 6:18 PM | 6:56 PM | 7:25 PM | 12h 32m |
| October | 6:30 AM | 6:58 AM | 7:37 AM | 5:23 PM | 6:02 PM | 6:31 PM | 11h 04m |
| November | 6:08 AM | 6:38 AM | 7:22 AM | 3:37 PM | 4:20 PM | 4:51 PM | 9h 42m |
| December | 6:38 AM | 7:11 AM | 7:58 AM | 3:22 PM | 4:09 PM | 4:41 PM | 8h 58m |
Local time (America/New York), including daylight saving time. Golden hour runs from about −4° to +6° solar altitude, so the morning golden hour begins during blue hour, before sunrise.
Milky Way & night sky
From Horn Pond, the Milky Way core is visible in a dark sky from March through September. June gives the longest window (about 3.8 hours on a moonless night), and the core peaks around 18° above the southern horizon. Our light-pollution model puts the sky at about Bortle 4 (rural / suburban transition), good enough for detailed Milky Way images.
| Month | Core visible (15th) | Hours | Max altitude | Direction |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | Below 10° in darkness | — | -4° | — |
| February | Below 10° in darkness | — | 8° | — |
| March | 4:36 AM – 5:16 AM | 0.7 | 14° | SSE → SSE |
| April | 2:31 AM – 4:11 AM | 1.7 | 17° | SSE → S |
| May | 12:34 AM – 3:14 AM | 2.7 | 18° | SSE → S |
| June | 10:48 PM – 2:38 AM | 3.8 | 18° | SSE → SSW |
| July | 10:36 PM – 1:16 AM | 2.7 | 18° | S → SSW |
| August | 9:40 PM – 11:20 PM | 1.7 | 17° | S → SSW |
| September | 8:34 PM – 9:14 PM | 0.7 | 14° | SSW → SSW |
| October | Below 10° in darkness | — | 8° | — |
| November | Below 10° in darkness | — | -2° | — |
| December | Below 10° in darkness | — | -19° | — |
Window when the galactic core is at least 10° high during astronomical darkness on the 15th of each month. Pick nights within a few days of the new moon. Plan exact nights with the Milky Way planner.
Estimated sky darkness: 4 Bortle 4 — Rural / suburban transition. Light domes are visible in several directions; the Milky Way is clear but lacks detail near the horizon. Modeled zenith brightness ≈ 20.83 mag/arcsec². Aurora needs roughly Kp 5.0+ to show low on the northern horizon here.
Weather & best season
Long-term NASA satellite data for this area show September as the clearest month (about 50% average cloud cover) and May as the cloudiest (66%). July is the warmest month and January the coldest, which matters for gear, snow access and how long batteries last at night.
Average cloud cover (%)
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| High °F | 60 | 61 | 73 | 85 | 83 | 89 | 90 | 95 | 94 | 79 | 68 | 62 |
| Low °F | -11 | -12 | -6 | 18 | 31 | 40 | 51 | 48 | 39 | 25 | 8 | -9 |
| Precip. (in) | 3.5 | 4.1 | 4.1 | 4.7 | 3.9 | 5.0 | 3.8 | 3.8 | 3.8 | 5.4 | 4.7 | 5.0 |
Monthly climatology for the surrounding 1° grid cell from NASA POWER (MERRA-2). Mountain sites can be colder and cloudier than the cell average.
Photography tips for this lake
- A polarizer can remove reflections to show the lakebed — or keep them, depending on rotation.
- Mist often lifts off lakes on cold mornings after warm days, especially in autumn.
- Include shoreline rocks, reeds or a log as foreground to give the reflection depth.
- Expose for the brighter sky; reflections are typically half a stop to a stop darker.
- After sunset, long exposures smooth wind ripples into glass.
- Scout in daylight if you plan to shoot at night or before sunrise.
Season: Autumn mornings bring mist and fall color; high-elevation lakes are usually ice-free only from early summer to mid-autumn.
Suggested gear: Tripod, Circular polarizer, Wide-angle lens, Waterproof boots. Work out exposures with the depth of field, ND filter and NPF rule calculators.
Nearby photo spots
Other locations within 25 km of Horn Pond, closest first.
Lake
Scenic Viewpoint
State Park
LakeFAQ
When is the best time to photograph Horn Pond?
What time is golden hour at Horn Pond?
Where does the sun rise and set at Horn Pond?
Can you see the Milky Way from Horn Pond?
Do you need a permit to photograph at Horn Pond?
How far is Horn Pond from Acton?
Sources
Location data: Wikidata, USGS GNIS / GeoNames, Wikipedia. Sun, moon and Milky Way times are computed by LWPhoto Atlas for 2026. Climate: NASA POWER. Sky darkness is a population-based estimate (Walker's law), not a measurement. See data sources & licenses.